CBU Army Rotc Color Guard Claims Drill Competition Trophy

Two teams from CBU's Army ROTC competed in the event last month in Richmond, Va. The
CBU Army ROTC won The National Society of Pershing Rifles Best Company Award, while
the male team placed third in the color guard competition. Cadet Kendall Morris also
placed third in the Drill & Ceremony Knockout competition.

"It shows the discipline, and it shows the dedication that the cadets have to the
program," said Sgt. 1st Class Jason Winkle, military science instructor.

The male team consisted of cadets Caleb Fink, Joshua Fink, Kendall Morris and Joel
Powell. It was Powell's second year on the team. Last year's first place team recognized
its strengths and weaknesses and this year's team learned from that.

"What we did this year was really focus on picking out those weaknesses and learning
from, say, our mistakes and learning from our strengths," Powell said. "We had a little
bit more time this year to really focus on the little details."

Cadet Nathan Shimabukuro had previously competed and this year coached the teams.

"It was good to be able to mentor and then teach everything that I learned," he said.
"I tried my best to instill in the younger cadets to always desire improvement. Practice
was never a waste of time and I found that, at every practice, there was always something
that could be changed for the better."

Shimabukuro also worked on building cohesion within the teams.

"No matter how knowledgeable or experienced any one person is, we all are still able
to learn from one another," he said. "The most important mindset to have is one that
puts others before one's self. Without the proper cohesion and dynamic, the team is
unable to function and improve."

More than 400 college ROTC and high school JROTC cadets from across the nation attended
the competition. Pershing Rifles drill teams compete in several categories, including
squad regulation drill, platoon exhibition drill, individual drill and color guard.

Pershing Rifles is an ROTC related organization that was started by Lt. John J. Pershing
in 1894 when he was the professor of military science at the University of Nebraska.